European Stocks Climb Before Euro-Area Confidence Report
European stocks advanced, paring their monthly loss, as investors awaited data that may show euro-area economic confidence rose in March. U.S. index futures and Asian shares also climbed.
Intesa Sanpaolo SpA gained 1.9 percent as it forecast dividend payouts of about 10 billion euros ($13.7 billion) in total for the period 2014 through 2017. Deutsche Wohnen AG rose 0.7 percent after posting a 68 percent increase in annual profit. Pirelli & C. SpA increased 2.6 percent after reporting 2013 earnings that surpassed analysts’ predictions.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 0.4 percent to 332.65 at 8:04 a.m. in London. The benchmark gauge has dropped 1.6 percent so far in March amid tension between Russia and the West over Ukraine’s Crimea region. The measure has still gained 1.5 percent this week. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures added 0.2 percent. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 0.7 percent.
A report at 11 a.m. Brussels time may show a gauge of economic confidence in the euro zone rose to 101.4 in March, from 101.2 a month earlier, according to the median estimate of economists in a Bloomberg survey. Separate data at the same time may show the region’s industrial confidence fell to minus 3.5 this month from minus 3.4 in February, economists predicted.
Intesa Sanpaolo gained 1.9 percent to 2.36 euros. Italy’s second-biggest bank forecast dividend payouts of 1 billion euros this year and 2 billion euros next year. The lender also said its fourth-quarter loss widened to 5.19 billion euros from 83 million euros a year earlier, as it wrote down goodwill and set aside more money for bad loans. Analysts on average had estimated a profit of 210 million euros.
Deutsche Wohnen
Deutsche Wohnen advanced 0.7 percent to 15.48 euros after saying funds from operations excluding divestments, a measure of a property company’s ability to generate cash, climbed to 114.5 million euros from 68.2 million euros a year earlier. Germany’s second-biggest residential landlord by market value had forecast 110 million euros. FFO in 2014 will be at least 210 million euros, the company said in a statement.
Pirelli climbed 2.6 percent to 11.51 euros after reporting 2013 earnings before interest and taxes of 791 million euros, beating the 789 million-euro average analyst projection. The Italian tiremaker also cut its forecast for 2014 revenue to about 6.2 billion euros from 6.6 billion euros, citing the effect of currency swings.
Source: bloomberg
